Exploration Amplification

The Challenge

Mineral exploration and discovery represent the foundations of Western Australia’s successful mining sector. Maintaining the productivity of the this key industry into the future will require the discovery and characterisation of ore bodies deeper below the surface and hidden from traditional methods of discovery, pushing industry to reduce both the cost and the environmental footprint of exploration technology.

Investment in exploration research and education are critical for WA to meet these emerging challenges and maintain the State’s position as a preferred supplier of mineral commodities.

Context

Through our Exploration Amplification focus area, MRIWA is working to define a future vision of productive mineral exploration for WA and to support the areas of priority research and education needed to deliver on this vision.

In working towards this goal, MRIWA encourages collaboration between the minerals industry, researchers and government to:

• Create and nurture global networks and knowledge leadership in mineral exploration.
• Increase the adoption and implementation of exploration research outcomes.
• Maintain strategic foresight regarding research and education needs related to mineral exploration.
• Stimulate partnership opportunities in areas of exploration research initiated by industry.
• Generate awareness of and enthusiasm for career pathways in exploration, and in broader geoscience and technology as they relate to mineral exploration.

Current MRIWA Activities

Active Research [1]

MRIWA currently has $5,826,596 invested across 19 research projects related to Exploration Amplification, with the leveraged research value totalling $26,180,225.

• Seismic in the Drilling Workflow – Phase 2: MinEx CRC Project 5 – M10446
• Petrophysics for Mineral Discovery during Drilling – Phase 2: MinEx CRC Project 4 – M10445
• Coiled Tubing Drilling for definition of Mineral Deposits – Phase 2: MinEx CRC Project 2 – M10424
• Distal footprints in the South West Terrane – M10433
• Indicator Minerals for Nickel Exploration – M10426
• Understanding the Mt Weld Carbonatite mineral system – a Critical Minerals super-resource in Western Australia – M10422
• Primary and secondary high-grade gold mineralisation processes in orogenic systems: key to a sustainable mining? – M10412
• Orebody knowledge, landscape history and mineralisation of Martite – Goethite Ores in the Hamersley Province (WA) – M0557
• Evolution of Proterozoic multistage rift basins – key to mineral systems – ARC Linkage proposal linked to M0521 – M0554
• Integrated 3G – Geochronology-geochemistry-grain shape: a new toolkit for mineral sands understanding – M0551
• Field-based XRF for prompt Au analysis – M0543
• Yilgarn 2020 – M0530
• Lithospheric and crustal-scale controls on multi-stage basin evolution: Impacts on Mineralising Systems – M0521
• Sub-Project of MinEx CRC – Centrifuge optimisation for fluid management in Coiled Tubing drilling – M0509d
• Sub-Project of MinEx CRC: Project 5 – Seismic in the Drilling Workflow – M0509c
• Sub-Project of MinEx CRC: Project 4 – Petrophysics for Mineral Discovery during Drilling – M0509b
• Sub-Project of MinEx CRC: Project 2 – Coiled tubing drilling for definition of Mineral Deposits – M0509a
• A multi-scale approach to controls on mineralization in the Fraser Zone, Western Australia – M0470a
• The paradigm shift for minerals exploration using ultrafine soils and intelligent data integration tools – Extension to M0462 – M0462a

Active MRIWA PhD Projects [1]

Two of the 14 students currently supported by MRIWA scholarships at WA Universities are completing research projects related to Exploration Amplification. Total MRIWA investment in these PhD scholarships is $123,550.

• Giant rare-metal pegmatites of the East Pilbara Terrane, Western Australia: Mineral systems analysis and terrane-scale exploration – M0561
• Geodynamics and basin evolution of the Paterson Orogen from Paleoproterozoic to Neoproterozoic based on 3D geophysical modelling and data inversion – M0547

[1] Project listing of MRIWA Projects classified under the Increase Recovered Value through Processing program at 14 October 2022.